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MHNA

posted on Jun 20, 2007 - 09:01 PM

does the bible condone slavery?

deuteronomy 15:12-15, speaks on how to treat slaves, but no word on slavery being evil.

Joined: Dec 20, 2005 | Posts: 29
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Biboboy

posted on Jun 20, 2007 - 09:24 PM

Agape,

Slavery in biblical times was different than slavery in collonial times. In fact, most of the slaves in the ancient world were quite well-off, some even rich (slaves of the Roman Emperor lived luxuriously), but yes, there were some who were poor. Slavery was a means of paying a debt that could not have been payed in any other means.

While the Bible itself does not oppose slavery as described above, since it was the norm of society of those times, the spirit and teaching of the Bible would certainly be against the horrific kind of slavery that we know about during collonial times, which was based on ethnic inequality and was forced on those people, rather than paying off a debt. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that humans are not equal and that "lower-class" people should be enslaved.

The world today is against slavery because we have experienced the horrors of collonial slavery. This does not apply to the ancient world, though, so the Bible is innocent of the claim that it condones all kinds of slavery.

_________________
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In Christ,
Bishoy
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Joined: Sep 28, 2004 | Posts: 722

Anglian

posted on Oct 22, 2007 - 10:40 AM

Yes, it is important to see this in context.

Slavery was endemic in the ancient world, and indeed, until recent times. So why was it that in the west, where much money was made out of this trade, that it was banned?

The answer lies with Christianity and its influence. Men like William Wilberforce, devout Christians, took the view that each of us is a child of God, and that all were deserving of respect and the chance of knowing the Lord. Both the slaved and the slavers were degraded by the whole business, and it as important to Wilberforce that the slaver should repent of his sins.

So, yet again, we see how our faith has worked to make this world a better place for His people.

In Christ,

Anglian

_________________
In love did He bring the world into existence; in love is He going to bring it to that wondrous transformed state, and in love will the world be swallowed up in the great mystery of Him who has performed these things.
- St Isaac of Nineveh

Joined: Oct 20, 2007 | Posts: 23
Location: Norfolk UK

minasoliman

posted on Oct 22, 2007 - 11:49 AM

St. Paul offers us some interesting insight on his ideas of slavery. First, if you are a slave, your status is no lower than a master. Second, Onesimus was also freed as was asked of Paul to Philemon. So two things:

1. A slave is just as important as a human as a master
2. It would rather be preferable if we as Christians did not have slaves.

God bless.

Joined: May 22, 2003 | Posts: 1748

Anglian

posted on Oct 22, 2007 - 01:38 PM

From minasoliman:St. Paul offers us some interesting insight on his ideas of slavery. First, if you are a slave, your status is no lower than a master. Second, Onesimus was also freed as was asked of Paul to Philemon. So two things:

1. A slave is just as important as a human as a master
2. It would rather be preferable if we as Christians did not have slaves.

God bless.

Dear Mina,

Thank you for these examples.

One of the earliest Popes, Callistus, was said to have been the domestic slave of a Christian freeman, Carpophorus.

It is probably wise to draw a distinction between the type of slavery endemic in the ancient world and the later transatlantic one - although there were probably parallels at times.

What is clear is that Christianity has played a major role in making the whole idea of slavery repugnant.

In Christ,

Anglian

_________________
In love did He bring the world into existence; in love is He going to bring it to that wondrous transformed state, and in love will the world be swallowed up in the great mystery of Him who has performed these things.
- St Isaac of Nineveh

Joined: Oct 20, 2007 | Posts: 23
Location: Norfolk UK